Nonosseous considerations in trauma.

A description of the nonosseous considerations, both accidental and iatrogenic, in the evaluation and treatment of the traumatized foot has been presented. The brief description of the types of wounds encountered provided here should enable the reader to extrapolate the principles to be used in treating any type of pedal wound. A classification of wounds for better understanding of treatment alternatives is presented. Though it is obvious that classifying wounds may be simplistic, the myriad of treatment alternatives make the definitive treatment of the wounds a dynamic process. It is axiomatic that clean wounds can be closed and infected wounds cannot; however, clinicians are rarely presented with such clear-cut alternatives. The patient, the principles of wound healing, and the bacterial-host interface must all be considered in rendering an appropriate diagnosis and selecting the most effective treatment from the multiplicity of treatments available.